Democratic US Representative Joyce Beatty has filed a lawsuit seeking to remove President Donald Trump's name from the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.
Last week, the board of the Kennedy Center - which Trump filled with allies - voted to rename the performing arts center the Trump-Kennedy Center.
Beatty is one of several Democratic lawmakers designated as members of the board by US law. She claimed in her lawsuit that the renaming was illegal because changing the name requires an act of Congress.
The suit states that Beatty had called into the meeting about the name change but was muted when she attempted to voice her opposition.
Beatty argues that Congress intended for the center to be a living memorial to former President Kennedy.
[I]n scenes more reminiscent of authoritarian regimes than the American republic – the sitting President and his handpicked loyalists renamed this storied center after President Trump, the lawsuit states.
In a statement provided to the BBC, the White House asserted that Trump had stepped up to save the Kennedy Center by enhancing its finances, modernizing the building, and ending divisive programming.
As a result, the Kennedy Center's Board voted unanimously to rename it the Trump-Kennedy Center — a move that marks a new era of success for one of America's most iconic cultural institutions, according to White House spokesperson Liz Huston.
On Friday, Trump's name was added to the exterior of the building, and the center's website now reads The Trump Kennedy Center.
This name change has drawn strong criticism, particularly in Washington DC where the center has been a recognized landmark since its inception.
Construction began on the performing arts center in the 1950s, and following Kennedy's assassination in 1963, Congress decided to honor him with the naming.
After taking office, Trump replaced board members with loyalists who voted in favor of renaming him chairman. His close adviser Richard Grenell has become the board president.
The current board comprises 34 members appointed by Trump and 23 members designated by US law.
Notably, Trump secured roughly $257 million in congressional funding to address renovations and improvements at the venue, which he characterized as being in bad shape.
Several members of the Kennedy family have publicly criticized the name change. Joe Kennedy III, a former House member and grandnephew of the late president, commented that the Kennedy Center is a living memorial to a fallen president and named for President Kennedy by federal law. He emphasized that it should not be renamed, just as the Lincoln Memorial cannot be altered.
